Larry, Read your article in John Mauldin's blog.. I am 76 and have not taken my SS or Medicare, my concern is should I pop off unexpectedly that my wife Janet is able to apply for and receive her benefits. Are you available on a consulting basis ? I am somewhat dyslectics and find extracting information form the written word a struggle, thus my request for direct contact. I look forward to your reply... Frank

Dear Frank,

Please enter an Ask Larry question, but include your phone number. It won't be made public and I will call you back. But here is the answer. You need to immediately file for both SS and Medicare. You are gaining nothing from waiting and potentially losing thousands of dollars in benefits each year. Your Social Security retirement reached its highest value when you turned 70. So waiting beyond 70 to collect it is just losing it. You can collect 6 months of retroactive benefits, but that's it. As for Medicare, they penalize you for not signing up after you reach age 65 if you aren't still working for a large employer. The penalty comes in the form of higher Medicare Part B premiums that will apply for the rest of your life. I want you to go into the local SS office tomorrow and ask them to start your benefits retroactive to 70 and to start your Medicare immediately with no higher premium applied compared to having started it at 65. Please point out that you have a physical condition that prevented you from understanding what you were supposed to do. That may permit them to make an exception to their truly nasty rules.

All best and good luck, Larry